The Belgian team scored a 1-2 – for the glory, if not points – in the first pre-season test in Sakhir as team came to grips with 2018 machinery… and fickle brakes.

A full complement of 42 drivers, three for each of the 14 Superleague teams, took to the track over the 12 hours of testing. There were no points at stake, but the chance to finally test the 2018 cars in an official environment – and all teams took their chances out in the desert.

Jarl Teien set the fastest time of the day with 1:27.953, 0.445s ahead of teammate Petar Brljak. Fran Lopez on Hawkeye completed the virtual podium – the only other driver within a second of Teien.

Mark Hutchinson gave Flag-to-Flag the distinction of being the best of the debutant teams out of the blocks, while Alex Siebel was the leading driver for reigning constructors’ World Champions ACR Zakspeed.

Most drivers completed around 50 laps, with the exception of the Wauters drivers – potentially testing their Quasar engines on the new manufacturer’s first outing – and a hard-working Eric Stranne, who clocked the highest mileage of the day with 119 laps.

The early test was a good occasion for drivers to acquaint themselves with the cars. While not many pushed their 2018 competitors to the limits on this first day, the session was an occasion to test the various components. In particular, several teams reported issues with overheating brakes – something their engineers and designers will need to address ahead of the second test.

Wauters Automotive is proud to announce the signing of both Jarl Teien and Petar Brljak for their 2018 Superleague Campaign.

They will be joined by Test driver Niels Brugman for the technical development of the car, and Technical Director Daniel Cziranku who will be making all the right decisions in terms of development path and long term strategy for both the Wauters Automotive machinery and the Quasar QRS-01 powertrain that propels it.

Jarl Teien will return to the team and is looking forward to challenge for the championship this time around after a successful second half of 2017:
“2018 will be a different challenge than last year, last year I was only supposed to step in a few races but ended up doing pretty much rest of the season. After hints of success I see 2018 being quite successful with a different mod and prize money for the first time to boost the morale.”

Petar Brljak is looking forward to lining up alongside the Norwegian and is equally eager to battle for that one top spot:
“It’s exciting to re-enter league competition with a new team after a season’s break. The goal for everyone is running consistently at the front and even though it’s very early days, try to challenge for the championship. For me, it also gives me a chance to challenge myself and sharpen my skills for what might come in the growing world of eSports racing.”

For Technical Director Daniel Cziranku and Team Manager Andreas Wauters, the signing of such a competitive line-up comes as a relief and a sign to push the competitiveness of the Belgian outfit even further:
“When Gergo told us he wanted to focus on tintops in 2018, we of course had to respect and support that decision with full intent, but we had a big job to do to find someone that could fit his shoes in Superleague. We think that with the re-signing of Jarl and the addition of Petar to our squad, we think we’ve done just that, and even more. We will be fully focussed to give these amazing drivers the best car possible during the entire season. 2018 will surely keep us on the edge of our seat!”

In addition to the reveal of their 2018 line-up, the team announced that the sale of their new Quasar QSR-01 engine would start tomorrow.

Today, Superleague team and recently named engine supplier Wauters Automotive unveiled their new powertrain at the circuit of Zolder.

The launch of the new piece of cutting edge technology came after the Belgian team applied for and was successfully awarded the 2018 engine tender. The powertrain will be fielded as ‘Quasar’, named after the powerful stellar object, and its first motorsport variant for the highest class of open wheel racing will be known as the QSR-01.

For team boss Andreas Wauters, the development of their own powertrain is the logical next step for Wauters Automotive:
“We have enjoyed five increasingly successful seasons at GPVWC.com now, and have always been looking for the next new way to increase our competitive advantage by making upgrades to both our car as our way of working. Being able to develop a powertrain adds an extra layer of parameters that we can play with and optimize. This is amazing news for a team that applies a data driven, objective approach in development. We have attracted an amazing team of talented individuals to work on the development of this engine, and I’m sure they can build the best possible powertrain for both our customers and ourselves.”

Daniel Cziranku, Technical Director of the team, will be spearheading the development of this new piece of kit:
“I can’t wait to get my hands on our new project, which will give a brand new taste and level of complexity to our Superleague conquest. We are thankful for this opportunity to develop the Quasar units, and we’ll do everything in our power to ensure the competitiveness of both our customers’ and our own on track.”

Niels Brugman will rejoin the team as Test driver, and will be using his considerable speed and known consistency to develop the engine as well as possible:
“I am very excited to be a part of Wauters Automotive again and help them develop their Quasar engine. I’m confident we can develop a very competitive engine and do well as a team in both championships.”

The full line-up of the team, as well as some other announcements have yet to be disclosed.
Teams that wish to discuss the possibility of implementing the Quasar engine in their 2018 Superleague contender can email to contact@wautersautomotive.com or contact the team on Facebook.

The Belgian team will be supplying power units for the Superleague after being awarded the licence by the GPVWC Management.

The GPVWC Management reviewed the applications for the position of engine manufacturer for the 2018 GPVWC Superleague and beyond. Having received two outstanding applications, the winning bid was chosen by a panel comprising no members with any interest in teams within the championship.

Having reviewed all available data, the GPVWC Management has decided to issue the final licence to manufacture engines to Wauters Automotive, a team that made huge strides in their Superleague career.

We would like to wish the best to Wauters for their new venture and we are looking forward to seeing them on track in 2018.

Wauters Automotive is pleased to announce that Norwegian driver Jarl Teien will join the team in their Superleague campaign for the second half of the season.

Teien has driven for the team before on numerous occasions, and racked up a total of 4 wins and as many podiums for the team during their 2014 and 2015 Supercup campaigns. Daniel Cziranku, who has driven as a primary driver up until now will stay involved in his role as technical director for the team, a position that has been proven of tremendous value for the team.

Jarl Teien is happy to join the Wauters Automotive team in Superleague:
“Andreas asked me to step in the race seat and I will do as often as I can. Happy to be working alongside Gergo and Daniel.”

Daniel Cziranku explains the rationale behind the driver change:
“We proudly present our newest addition to our full-time lineup, Jarl Teien, who already has proven himself in Superleague. We will work together on Wauters Automotive’s plans to get back to the front runners in the team championship, while Gergo is fighting for the very best positions in the series. In the beginning of the year i agreed to take role of technical director of the team, which comes with the responsibility of trying to improve our team and individual efforts on all battlefields. I had the final call in regards to the driver change, which I hope will propel us back to where we aim to be. On a personal level, missing out on sim racing last year, plus transitioning to a cpm based tire model needs more practice from my end to get used to it, which i’m about to cover with full throttle. I’ll be back on track after some fine tuning, and in the meantime i’ll support Gergo and Jarl preparing for race weekends.”

The signing also brings some risk for the team, as the Norwegian driver is looking to switch jobs and can’t guarantee there will be no overlaps in schedule between the job and Superleague. This risk is anticipated and accepted by the team.

Teamboss Andreas Wauters explains:
” Jarl has proven time and time again that he has the needed pace and talent to bring great results, with this signing, we hope we can give him a car capable of challenging for podiums on a consistent basis. In terms of pace, Jarl is close to, if not on par with Gergo, and we envision great things for the pair. Jarl already explained me that he might need to bow out again later, depending on time schedule for his new job. This is completely acceptable for us. we’ve taken calculated risks before, and will continue to do so as long as we can balance out the risk and reward for the decision. I’m quite confident we’ll look back at this moment in a positive way come the end of the season, regardless of whether Jarl was able to continue until the end. ”

Teien’s first race alongside Baldi as a primary driver will be the German GP this Thursday.

The Belgian team aims to capitalise on its one season of experience in the top flight as they unveil an incredibly talented line-up.

With the 2017 Simracing season gathering speed, Wauters Automotive is pleased to announce their Superleague line-up for the 2017 season.

Since the grid is becoming more competitive every year due to the increased popularity of Simracing as a genre in E-sport (Visa Vegas E-prix, exhibit A), the Belgian outfit is looking to strengthen their position in various different ways.

Team Manager Andreas Wauters outlines the Road map for 2017:
“2016 was a solid start for us in Superleague, and I think all our involved team members can be proud of what we achieved, but there definitely were some things that we can improve on. We hope to achieve these improvements operating from our new headquarters near the circuit of Zolder.

“A more optimized development strategy based on lessons learned from last year is one of the key working points for us this year, but we also want to transform our organisation to be more dynamic and professional by welcoming new members to our management and support team. I believe teams excel when everybody has a clear goal that is aligned with their expertise, and is allowed to take ownership and responsibility of this facet of proceedings. This of course remains an ongoing process.

“However, we have already been able to lock in the most important part of this, which is our 2017 SL drivers line-up. The drivers that we have attracted are extremely professional and all have experience in real life racing, be it in karting, national tintop racing or straight up GT madness. The extensive portfolio of these drivers is a testament to their skill and persistence.”

In the #30 car: Gergo Baldi, 2016 Hankook Racer Series Champion and practically born in a simracing seat.
“I’m glad that I got the chance to take part in Wauters Automotive’s 2017 campaign. The 2016 season was a build-up for this year’s challenge, so I was really happy when Andreas asked me about my plans for ’17. I am as serious and motivated as ever, so I believe we can achieve something nice. The team is ready, I am ready, so let’s see what we can do together.”

In the #33 car: Daniel Cziranku, Semi professional karter and extremely proficient in setting up the car.
“It’s always a pleasure to work with real professionals in a team, and Wauters Automotive has some of the very best of their mastery. I am very grateful for the fighting chances provided by Andreas, especially alongside Gergo Baldi in Superleague. We know, race and help each other since forever, so the atmosphere is even more friendly. All set for a great season!”

In the Test & reserve driver seat: Dennis Lind, 2016 Lamborghini Super Trofeo European and World Champion.
“Joining Wauters is going to be a nice challenge this year, a nice push in the masters series in the start of the season, and hopefully a strong Superleague campaign to finish it off, I have high hopes for this one, so a big thanks to Andreas for bringing me on board.”

That was pretty good! Petar Brljak with yet another masterclass drive to salvage 3rd, going on a 2 stop strategy after a collision early in the race with Daniel Kiss putting in a very strong race as well to get both Edge cars into the top 5! 😎